Savings-bank.



No; 862,283. I l YPMMITED AUG. 6, 1907.

W. SAMS.

SAVINGS BANK.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 2, 190e.

m il gi savings-nenn.

ne. seaees.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application ls lday 2, i966. srial lo- 314,781.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that-ll, WALTER Sans, a citizen or' the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented a certain new vision of an improved construction whereby coin may be inserted into the bankA `While yits removal from the bank'is thereafter prevented, and, second, the provision of a locking device controlled in part by the coin, whereby the interior o the bank is rendered nonaccessible until a predetermined quantity of coin has been supplied thereto.

ln practicing my invention, employ tivo overlapping members provided With openings or`cut away v portions that Aarenorngially sufficiently out of register vto prevent the extraction of coin from the interior or the bank, which overlapping members are adapted to be sufficiently displaced by the passage ofthe coin to permit of` a su'icient increase in the size of the coinl passage to allow' the coin to enter the bank. The overlapping members are desirably integral parts oi a curved spring formed of sheet metal, which spring, Iin the preferred embodiment' of the invention, is surrounded by a casing, though I do not wish to be limt'ed to this construction. Whore a surrounding casing is employed, the circular part thereof is provided with an opening for permitting the coin to traverse the passage defined by .the overlapping members, In the preferred embodiment of the invention, the members move in the'plane of the spring, said spring being normally under such tension that it will cause the aforesaid members thereof to occupy positions respecting eachother that Will so restrict the size of the coin passage defined by these members as to prevent the discharge of coin from the interior of the bank. When the coin is passed into the interior of the bank, these members move apart against the tension of the spring, to permit oi the enlargement ,of the coin passage defined by the members thereof, this-movement being, as stated, in the plane o the spring, the surrounding casing having suficient clearance with respect to the spring when normales to permit of this 'expansion of the spring. is employed, namely, the locking device, l desire to provide a tongue fastened at one end to an end wall of the and free at the othe" end to engage a notch provided in 'the cylindrical all oi the bank, this tonfne normally so directed that it will engage Where the other feature of my inventionu said notch, but having, `when in such engagement, a clearance at its free end with respect to the Wall upon which it is mounted. When, the bank is suficiently fell of coin, this clearance will be removed to cause the .tree end oi the tongue to clear the notch, Whereafter the end walls of the bank may be separated.

I will explain my .invention more fullyby reference to the accompanyingdratving, in which- Figure l is'la vievv in elevation of the preferred enibodiment of the bank of my invention. Fig. 2 is a plan view on line 2 2 of Fig. l. Fig. 3 is a sectional View on line 3 3 of 2. Fig. 4 is Yanother plan View of the bank, with a top portion removed. Fig. 'is a view similar to Fig. 3, with the exception that certain 'of the parts are shown in' separated relation. Fig. G is n perspective viewhhowing the stiff spring employed `Within the interior of the bank structure.

Like; parts are indicated by similar characters ofV reference throughout the different figures.

The gures of the drawing illustrate the preferred J5 the groove e that do not communicate directly with`v the outlets, whereby scparationiof these sections of the bank is prevented until said lugs g are again brought into line with said outlets. The inner section a is provided with a notch at k yadapted to receive the free end of the tongue 'i anchored at one end upon the interior of the section b, it being'tho free end of the tongue that is adapted for engagement with said notch. This tongue is desirably formed of strip spring metal and is normally under suchtonsion that it will, when the bank is unfilled with coin, have its free end in engagement with the notch h, when said free end and said notch are adapted to register upon a suitable rotary movement oi the sections a-b with respect to each. other, the lugs gl then being in locking' relation with the groove e and sufliciently displaced from the outlets f that a vseparation of the sections' a-b cannot occur. The tongue t, by engaging the .notch orvrecoss h, will prevent afro-registering of the lugs g with the outlets f, but when trie bank is sufficiently full of coin, the free end of the tongue i will be moved close to the ond Wall oi the section b, the coin thereby removing the ree end of the tongue from engagement with the notch 7c., vfhereaitcr the desired rotary lirmvenxont between the sections o the los? lli)

casing may be effected to bringthe lugs g into register with the outlets f to enable the removal of the contents of the bank.

Thetwo sectionsof the casing are provided withA coin slots 'k adapted to register .when the tongueli engages the notch h. 1" In the embodiment of the invention shown, 'there is disclosed within the casing of the bank a'icoil-spring l, desirably formed of strip metal and normally having slight clearance with respect to the inclosing'casing. The overlapping portions of this spring re provided with openings or recesses ,m-m which are normally slightly out of register' and which are adapted to be brought into register by the passing coin, the open'- ing jointly afforded by the overlapping ends `'of' the springbeing normally insufficient to permit of the passage of the coin but being automatically increased by the coin in its passage. When the coin has passed, the spring returns to its initial position, in which the recess m-m again restrict the size oithe'lopening, whereby the coin after it has passed into the interior of the bank, is prevented from displacement. The recesses m-m are located in line with the slots lc, for the purpose of the structure.

It will be seen that the passages m-m are normallyv' out' of register sufliciently toA prevent coin from passihg"therethrough from the interiorl of the bank, 'these'l passages m-m being sufficiently placed in register by coin'as it is passed into the bank, it being'under' stood,` of course, that the said passages are adapted to a single denomination of coin; as dimes, for example.

vWhile I have shown 'the-recesses m--m in the marl ginal portions of the overlapping parts ot'l the spring l,

I do not wish to be limited to this construction.

It is obvious that changes may readily be made in the device Yof' myinvention without departing from the spirit thereof, andA I do not, therefore, wish to be limited to the precisey construction shown, but, r Vv.Having thusdescribed my invention, I claim s new and desire to secure. by Letters-Patent the follovvingz- Y 1. A bank structure 'including two cylindrical elements of a casing, one of said elements having,r a groove extending. peripherally thereof and having an outlet at an langle with respect to the balance of the groove, While tbe' other ofsaid elements is provided with a lug adapted for pas 'sage through said outlet into said groove and thereafter` adapted for passage ulo'ngi'said groove upon relative rota-4 tion of said elements,wherby the said elements are then locked to prevent 'separationflongitudinally of each other,

' a notch vor recess rprovided in'one of said casing elements, andl a, tongue provided upon the 'other casing element and adapted to extend into said notch when said elements are relatively rotated to prevent their longitudinal' separation, v

said tongue then serving to prevent relative rotary motion between said elements, said tongue being displaceable from `engagement with said dotch by the coin passed into the bank in sudcient quantity, whereupon said elements may vbe .rotated relatively and separatdrlongltudinally to per- 'mit of access to the interior'of the bankfoverlapping members, each provided with .a passage, said passages being normally out`of register, said overlapping members being relatively movable by coin asr itis passed through the coin passages to the interior of the bank, whereby the coin passage jointly attordedby the over-v lapping members is increased in size up'on the passage of coin, said overlapping members being adapted to be ref,

stored to their normal positions when said coin has been A' deposited in the bank, whereby to reduce the 'size of the coin passage jointly afforded by said members to prevent discharge'o the coin from the bank,

3. A bank structure including twogiselrestoring stiff' overlapping members `ointly ador-ding :1 Acoin, passage,` said overlapping members being relatively movable by coin as it is passed through the co'in passages to the interior of the bank, whereby the coin passage jointly attorded by the overlapping members is increased in size upon the passage of coin, said overlapping members being adapted to be restored to their vnormal positions when said coin has been deposited in the bank, whereby to reduce the size of the coin passage jointly aiorded by saidmembers to prevent 'of the bank to permit enlargement of the coin passage.

5. A bank-structure including a coil-spring Whose ends 'constitute 'overlapping members jointly affording a coin passage, said members being normally suiiiciently out of register to prevent v'rhepassllge of coin from the interior of the bank through said passage, said members being adapted to be suiclently moved relatively by coin Aas it is passed into the bank structure to suiiiciently increase the size of the coin passage to permit coin to pass.

6. A bank structure including a coll-spring Whose ends constitute two overlapping members provided with passages normally outvof register, said overlapping members being displaceable by coin as it is passed therethrough'to the interior of the bank to permit an increase in the size of the opening through which the coin is received into the bank.

In witness whereof, I hereunto subscribe my name this 26th day of Apr-ii, A. D. 1906.

WALTER sins. 

